Increased financial aid to citizens reaches 47 billion euros
In Germany, the allocation of unemployment benefits, known as Bürgergeld, is a significant aspect of the country's income support programs. As of mid-2025, approximately 5.64 million beneficiaries are receiving these benefits, with a total expenditure of around €29.6 billion on income support.
Enzo Weber, from the Institute for Employment Research (IAB), has highlighted that the increase in unemployment benefits is due to a significant increase in basic allowances in 2023 and 2024 as a result of inflation. However, concerns about welfare fraud linked to some non-German individuals persist.
Weber believes that nearly half of unemployment benefit recipients being foreigners is plausible. In 2024, a total of 7.4 billion euros were paid out to people from the eight main asylum countries, and several hundred thousand Ukrainians and their children received unemployment benefits, having fled to Germany due to the Russian war of aggression. Around 6.3 billion euros were paid out to Ukrainians in 2024 alone.
The scientist emphasizes the importance of providing assistance for starting work in the labor market for people receiving unemployment benefits. He also criticizes the lack of assistance for people receiving benefits for asylum seekers and suggests that integration with language courses and qualifications for Ukrainian refugees should be faster.
Weber states that investing in reducing structural unemployment is less expensive than dealing with it and believes that seeing basic security as a springboard is more beneficial than a problem. He also mentions that the number of employable benefit recipients has been decreasing since autumn 2024.
The employment rate among Ukrainian refugees has increased from 24.8% in October 2023 to 33.2%. The German Trade Union Confederation (DGB) opposes the demands of the AfD party and emphasizes the need for immigration in Germany.
The Federal Court of Auditors has criticized shortcomings in the placement of people on unemployment benefits. Historical research indicates that migrant groups (notably Turkish and Polish migrants) tend to have different preferences and possibly participation rates in redistribution, including unemployment benefits.
Studies from 1997 to 2002 show Turkish and Polish migrants had lower or similar support for unemployment benefits compared to native West Germans and have increasingly assimilated in preferences over time. This suggests that migrants have been present in the social support system for decades but possibly with some differences in use and attitudes toward unemployment benefits.
The current distribution of unemployment benefits in Germany between German citizens and non-German citizens is not explicitly detailed in recent public data, but the trends over time indicate a gradual alignment of migrant preferences with those of native Germans. The debates focus on maintaining benefit adequacy, combatting fraud, and managing economic pressures affecting unemployment and support distribution across the entire population.
Finance ministers are debating the allocation of resources for unemployment benefits in Germany, with a focus on maintaining benefit adequacy while addressing concerns about welfare fraud. The discussions also involve the business sector, politics, and general news, as the amount spent on unemployment benefits has increased significantly in recent years.
Enzo Weber, a scientist from the Institute for Employment Research (IAB), has proposed faster integration programs for asylum seekers and Ukrainian refugees, such as language courses and qualifications, to decrease unemployment and better manage the distribution of benefits in the country.
